Medical Devices sector seeks government support in ensuring supply of essential medical equipment

Frontline medical professionals facing stiff resistance to their discharge of duties, sometimes violently by certain sections of frontline law enforcement officials

For the first time, we are experiencing an unprecedented global pandemic. The healthcare sector is at the epicentre of this challenge, and the private sector has risen to the occasion, by offering to the Government all the support it needs, be it testing support, preparing isolation beds for the treatment of COVID-19 positive patients or deploying equipment and staff in identified nodal hospitals.

The government has taken many proactive actions to reduce the impact of COVID-19 outbreak on India. The private healthcare sector highly appreciates these measures and has come together to support the nation in this global war against COVID-19. Industry too is closely engaging with the government and developing strategies to facilitate business focussed actions towards handling COVID-19 challenges. To manage the current public health emergency, the key priority is to meet the existing demand – supply gaps of essential medical supplies across India. 

“FICCI has been closely monitoring the situation and working alongside the healthcare sector to help remove any bottlenecks that could impede timely delivery of screening and treatment which is extremely critical to ensure that hospitals get timely medical supplies. Industry has put aside all thoughts of risk to self, staff and organisation and have risen to the occasion,” mentioned Badhri Iyengar, Chair, FICCI Medical Devices Committee and Cluster Managing Director – South Asia (SAARC) & South East Asia (ASEAN), Smith & Nephew.

Medical devices sectors come under essential services, and are playing a critical role in ensuring that hospitals are fully equipped on the ground, however, there have been many instances where frontline medical professionals face stiff resistance to their discharge of duties, sometimes violently by certain sections of frontline law enforcement officials.

“At a time when government and industry need to join hands and collaborate to ensure we tide over these critical times, industry too seeks equal government support by ensuring the safety of these professionals who are doing a yeoman service risking their safety to ensure that the supplies reach the last mile and demand supply gap is met,” added Iyengar.

Even though the Indian Government intends to ensure seamless delivery of essential services to the people of the country, despite the lockdown situation, however, these instances continue, which is unfortunate, and therefore FICCI requests the Union Home Ministry to intervene in this matter, so that much-required medical services are rendered without disruption.

At this time when holistic participation is required for India to emerge out of the COVID-19 crisis with as minimal an impact as possible to human life, we urge the Union Home Ministry to enable medical services organisations to effectively partake of this huge responsibility facing us.